Newspaper Page Text
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► TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2004
Pmcetot ;Mratte If
(Lrje
' OPINION
Daniel F. Evans
President,
Editor and Publisher
Julie B. Evans Rex Gambill
Vice President Managing Editor
Foy S. Evans
Editor Emeritus
Step Hi Right Direction
The Georgia Senate made the right move last
week when it approved new senatorial districts in
an effort to comply with an order issued by a
panel composed of three federal judges.
The plan the Senate approved includes the
entire counties of Houston, Pulaski and Bleckley
counties, as well as a small portion of South Bibb
County in a single district. It accomplishes what
should be accomplished, which is to avoid mean
dering districts where voters have little in com
mon with the people who represent them.
Whether the House will go along with the new
districts, including the one most important to
Houston Countians, is to be seen. The vote in the
Senate was along party lines, where Republicans
are in control. The House, controlled by
Democrats who drew the district lines that were
rejected by the federal judges, may have other
ideas. We will have to wait and see.
It is unfortunate that it is not possible to bring
in completely impartial parties to draw the lines
for both House and Senate Districts. Politics
always will enter decisions on this important
matter as long as the legislature is permitted to
create voting districts.
On the other hand, there is one way to have the
districts drawn by impartial parties. That is to
fail to do the job right and leave it to federal
judges to do it.
The judges do not have a dog in the fight
between political parties. They can look at the
state, use statistical figures and come up with dis
tricting aimed purely at giving Georgians the
kind of representation they need and deserve.
A deadline of March 1 has been set by the fed
eral judges for the legislature to come up with a
' map that will meet the approval of the judges. If
‘ they fail, then the judges will take over and do the
job for us.
It would be nice if our legislators could work
this out between them rather than leaving the job
to federal judges.
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HBIOB3 would protect Camp Benjamin Hawkins
This past week marked
the halfway point of the 40-
day legislative session, and
it has been a long 20 days.
For some of us on the budg
et writing committee it has
actually been 32 days
because we continue to work
while some are on recess.
I’m not complaining,
though. It is why I was elect
ed and after all of these
years, I still consider serving
you a great honor.
Much of my recent focus
has been on trying to get
House Bill 1083 through the
General Assembly. After
passing the House without
any opposition, it is now in
the Senate and needs help.
House Bill 1083 is a meas
ure that would prohibit any
new municipal waste dispos
al facility to be permitted
|v * / w
BH > Jm
Robert Ray
State Representative
within one mile of any pri
vate recreation camp that is
used by people under 18
years of age.
The intent is to stop a
landfill from being built 100
feet from the Boy Scout
It's all a matter of where you live
A NEWS ITEM out of
California say the children
of a war hero and super test
pilot are suing him over his
$1.3 million three-acre
ranch.
In California three acres is
a ranch. In Georgia three
acres is a home site.
The disparity between
what things sell for in
California and Georgia has
me thinking about the unre
alistic way the South is por
trayed in financial ways
with the rest of the nation.
Three acres, even at the
spiraling real estate prices
in Houston County, can be
had for a small fraction of
what a three-acre ranch
costs in California.
Simply put, it costs less to
live in Georgia and other
Southern states than it does
in most other regions of the
country.
When statistics are print
ed showing that we in our
area are backward because
the median income falls
below that of other regions,
the fact that money goes
further here than elsewhere
is overlooked.
If you have any doubt
about the staggering differ
ence between California and
Georgia just ask some of
Statute
For the next few weeks I’ll
address the statute of limi
tations, as it is one area of
the law that most people
have heard of, but few know
the technical requirements.
First, what is a statute of
limitations? It is a statute
that enforces a deadline for
the prosecution of a criminal
act. After the commission of
that proscribed time, there
follows a deadline by which
prosecution must be com
menced or the accused is
acquitted by operation of
law. There are a number of
exceptions to the statute of
limitations, which I will dis
cuss in the coming weeks.
The statute of limitations
for murder is ... never. There
is no limitation to when a
murder prosecution may be
commenced. There have
been some notable prosecu
tions that took place years
after the murder was com
mitted. One of the more
famous cases in recent years
was *the murder of Medgar
Evans in Jackson,
Mississippi in 1963. It was
n’t until 1994 that the pros
ecution of Byron De La
Beckwith was successfully
completed, over 31 years
after Evans, murder.
Beckwith was tried two pre
vious times, both times
resulting in hung juries.
Because there is no statute
of limitations, Beckwith
could be tried over and over
again until the case was con
cluded.
O.C.G.A. Section 17-3-1
(b) “Prosecution for other
crimes punishable by death,
or life imprisonment must
be commenced within seven
years after the commission
of the crime except as pro
vided by subsection (c.l) of
camp (Camp Benjamin
Hawkins) near Byron and
on the Peach Crawford
county line. It will also
affect the Macon Regional
Airport and Robins Air
Force Base because of the
bird hazard.
Mr. Joe Collins, our Peach
County commissioner, along
with Ron Carbon and Irby
Small who came to testify in
the Senate Committee, have
been extremely helpful and
they need to be commended
for their hard work. 1 would
also like to thank Sen. Robs
Tolleson for agreeing to help
carry this bill through the
Senate and I can’t forget the
Middle Georgia Chamber of
Commerce for their support.
Everybody has been a
great help we would appreci
ate any continued support
Foy Evans
Columnist
foyevans 19@cox .net
your civil service friends
who have transferred here
from California.
The former Californians
that I know have told me
that they were shocked to
learn how much more home
they can buy here and how
much less many things cost.
It isn’t how much money
you have. It is how much
you can buy with your
money. And, looking at it
this way, you have to admit
that we live in an area
where we can have a quality
lifestyle on much less money
than most other places.
It is something to think
about when we are prone to
complain about what we
of limitations: defined
■i shk \
Kelly Burke
District Attorney
distatty@houstonda.org
this Code section; provided,
however, that prosecution
for the crime of forcible rape
must be commenced within
15 years after the commis
sion of the crime.” Some of
since this bill has not passed
the Senate Committee.
Let me also briefly talk
about the budget that the
House approved this week.
HB 1180 is the $16.2 billion
amended 2004 state budget
for the current fiscal year
that ends June 30. Although
not perfect, the document
includes increased funding
for education, healthcare
and other services that orig
inated in part when legisla
tive budget writers discov
ered SIBO million from an
oversight in additional rev
enues by the governor’s
budget office.
The plan has $575,000 for
the State Patrol to continue
midnight Bhifts at all posts;
an additional $1.3 million to
the Medicaid program to
cover adult dental services;
conceive as high taxes, for
example.
• 00
SPEAKING, of quality of
life, I have lived in some
interesting places. New York
City, for example, is an excit
ing place. In a way, it is the
center of the universe. But
the average citizen has to
put up with a way of life that
is depressing to me. They’re
packed together. They seem
to have lost all touch with
common courtesy. Most of
them are rude and unfriend
ly. The cost of living is very
high. Recreation, as we
know it, is non-existent. I’ve
lived there and it didn’t take
long to learn it was no place
for me.
Chicago is a busy city. In
ways it is exciting. It also is
cold, cold, cold in the winter.
It also is overcrowded. I
found the quality of life dif
ferent than I wanted.
Now take Miami. What a
wonderful place it was
before and during World
War 11. Great weather. Nice
beaches. Plenty of recre
ation. Plenty of other things
to do, too. But post-war it
went down hill. Too many of
the things that make life
unpleasant for me today.
There are some who prob
those crimes include armed
robbery, kidnapping, aggra
vated child molestation and
other serious violent
felonies. Thus armed rob
bery has a seven-year
statute of limitation, but
rape has a fifteen-year
statute of limitation.
It’s interesting to note
that Georgia law still pro
vides for the death penalty
in rape cases, although the
United States Supreme
Court ruled in 1977 that the
death penalty was unconsti
tutional punishment for the
rape of an adult woman.
That case, Coker v. Georgia,
defined the rape of an adult
woman, but did not address
the rape of a child. That
issue is still unresolved to
an additional $1.5 million to
keep the Department of
Motor Vehicle Safety’s trav
el teams program in opera
tion; an additional $1.7 mil
lion to the Department of
Corrections to eliminate two
days of employee furloughs
for non-security personnel
and $45 million in bonds for
the Governor’s Road
Improvement Program
(GRIP) to build highways in
rural areas.
Middle Georgia also fared
well with $13.7 million for a
new classroom building at
Heart of Georgia Technical
College in Dublin; $1 million
to expand the campus of
Middle Georgia Technical
College in Warner Robins;
and $985,000 for renovation
and additions to the Georgia
War Veterans Home in
THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
ably will disagree with me
on all of those cities. Others
may like the things I dislike.
However, after testing the
waters in several places in
other parts of the country
after World War II I knew
that I preferred the friendly,
unhurried life with plenty of
wide open spaces back home
in Georgia, where I began.
• • •
IN THE final analysis,
quality of life depends on
what you want and what
you like. In New York City,
for example, they have night
life, opera, concerts, the arts
in many forms. I don’t care
for them, but I have friends
who can’t get enough of
them.
It is a matter of taste. Or a
matter of how you grew up.
Or the effects that your life
experiences have had on
you.
The important thing, I
believe, is to seek the place
that gives you the quality of
life that fits you. Not every
one can make that choice.
Where they live depends on
outside influences. But the
lucky ones among us are
those who have a choice and
make it.
this day.
All other felonies have a
four-year statute of limita
tion. Forgeries, burglaries,
felony thefts, drug offenses,
and any other felony falls
into this category.
Once a case has been
indicted, the law provides
that the statute of limitation
no longer applies, so getting
a case indicted within the
appropriate time is critical.
In the vast majority of cases
however, the statute of limi
tation is not an issue. But
there are times when we
bump into the limitation,
especially in cases where
DNA helps us discover the
perpetrator of a crime. Next
week, I’ll discuss that very
instance.
Milledgeville.
Writing a budget for the
state is a long and arduous
process. Many changes will
occur before an agreement is
reached on a final spending
plan. With this in mind, I
pledge to you that I will do
all can to put the best inter
est of my constituents front
and center.
I am proud to serve the
108th district and look for
ward to updating you
throughout the session.
Please, if you have any ques
tions, comments or would
like to talk, do not hesitate
to call me at: Work - (404)
656-6122, Home - (478) 825-
8739, Cell - (478) 965-4330.
Robert Ray, D-Fbrt Valley,
represents Georgia's 108th
District.